1.12: Polygon Classification

What if you were told how many sides a polygon has? How would you describe the polygon based on that information? After completing this Concept, you'll be able to classify a polygon according to the number of sides it has.

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Guidance

A
polygon
is any closed planar figure that is made entirely of line segments that intersect at their endpoints. Polygons can have any number of sides and angles, but the sides can never be curved. The segments are called the
sides
of the polygons, and the points where the segments intersect are called
vertices
. The easiest way to identify a polygon is to look for a closed figure with no curved sides.

Polygons can be either
convex
or
concave
. Think of the term concave as referring to a cave, or “caving in”. A concave polygon has a section that “points inward” toward the middle of the shape. All stars are concave polygons.

A convex polygon does not share this property.

Diagonals
are line segments that connect the vertices of a convex polygon that are not sides.

The red lines are all diagonals. This pentagon has 5 diagonals.

Whether a polygon is convex or concave, it can always be named by the number of sides. See the chart below.

Polygon Name

Number of Sides

Number of Diagonals

Convex Example

Triangle

3

0

Quadrilateral

4

2

Pentagon

5

5

Hexagon

6

9

Heptagon

7

14

Octagon

8

?

Nonagon

9

?

Decagon

10

?

Undecagon or hendecagon

11

?

Dodecagon

12

?

gon

(
where
)

?

Example A

Which of the figures below is a polygon?

The easiest way to identify the polygon is to identify which shapes are not polygons.
and
each have at least one curved side, so they cannot be polygons.
has all straight sides, but one of the vertices is not at the endpoint of the adjacent side, so it is not a polygon either.
is the only polygon.

Example B

Determine if the shapes below are convex or concave.

To see if a polygon is concave, look at the polygons and see if any angle “caves in” to the interior of the polygon. The first polygon does not do this, so it is convex. The other two do, so they are concave. You could add here that concave polygons have at least one diagonal outside the figure.

Example C

Which of the figures below is
not
a polygon?

is a three-dimensional shape, so it does not lie within one plane, so it is not a polygon.

Vocabulary

A
polygon
is any closed planar figure that is made entirely of line segments that intersect at their endpoints. The segments are called the
sides
of the polygons, and the points where the segments intersect are called
vertices
. Polygons can be either
convex
or
concave
. A concave polygon has a section that “points inward” toward the middle of the shape.
Diagonals
are line segments that connect the vertices of a convex polygon that are not sides.

Guided Practice

Name the three polygons below by their number of sides and if it is convex or concave.

Answers:

A. This shape has six sides and concave, so it is a concave hexagon.

B. This shape has five sides and is convex, so it is a convex pentagon.

C. This shape has ten sides and is convex, so it is a convex decagon.

Practice

In problems 1-6, name each polygon in as much detail as possible.

Explain why the following figures are NOT polygons:

How many diagonals can you draw from
one vertex
of a pentagon? Draw a sketch of your answer.

How many diagonals can you draw from
one vertex
of an octagon? Draw a sketch of your answer.

How many diagonals can you draw from
one vertex
of a dodecagon?

Use your answers from 8-10 to figure out how many diagonals you can draw from
one vertex
of an
gon?

Determine the number of total diagonals for an octagon, nonagon, decagon, undecagon, and dodecagon. Do you see a pattern? BONUS: Find the equation of the total number of diagonals for an
gon.

For 13-17, determine if the statement is ALWAYS true, SOMETIMES true, or NEVER true.

A polygon must be enclosed.

A star is a concave polygon.

A quadrilateral is a square.

You can draw
triangles from one vertex of a polygon.

A decagon is a 5-point star.

In geometry it is important to know the difference between a sketch, a drawing and a construction. A sketch is usually drawn free-hand and marked with the appropriate congruence markings or labeled with measurement. It may or may not be drawn to scale. A drawing is made using a ruler, protractor or compass and should be made to scale. A construction is made using only a compass and ruler and should be made to scale.

For 18-21, draw, sketch or construct the indicated figures.

Sketch a convex heptagon with two sides congruent and three angles congruent.

Sketch a non-polygon figure.

Draw a concave pentagon with exactly two right angles and at least two congruent sides.

Draw an equilateral quadrilateral that is NOT a square.

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Description

This concept teaches students how to classify a polygon based on its sides and how to determine whether a polygon is convex or concave.

Learning Objectives

Here you'll learn how to classify a polygon based on its sides. You'll also learn how to decide whether a polygon is convex or concave.